Is 'I Will Rejoice' my Resolution in Every Circumstance?

What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. 

Philippians 1:18

Daniel T. Hans in his book God on the Witness Stand mentions a real life incident about Arthur Gossip, a well-known Scottish preacher.
In 1927 the wife of Scottish preacher Arthur Gossip died suddenly. When he returned to the pulpit he preached a sermon titled "When Life Tumbles In, What Then?" In that sermon Gossip compared life to watching a plane fly gracefully across a brilliant sunlit blue sky when all of a sudden it is blown apart by gunfire and falls to earth as a tumbling, tangled mess of metal. Only on this occasion the gunfire was the tragically unexpected death of his beloved wife.

Gossip went on to explain that he didn't understand this life, but what he did know was that during this darkest period of his life he needed his faith more than ever. "You people in the sunshine may believe the faith, but we in the shadow must believe it. We have nothing else." Without his faith there was no hope.

There are similar type of challenges that every one of us face on a ongoing basis just in living in a fallen world. We too face challenges to joy. As Christians we are not removed from the difficulties of life. It may be the care of a parent that would challenge you joy. It may be the loss of a job. It may be the death of a spouse. It may be the unconverted state of a loved one. It may be the contraction of cancer. There are many forces that would be brought to bear upon a believer's life just like they were brought upon Paul that would threaten to take away our joy.

In the midst of such conflict and the resulting challenges to Paul's joy, the apostle tells us what is, nevertheless, the cause of his enlarging joy. Paul begins by saying, "What then?" That means, "So what is my response to this? How should I then live? What is my reaction? What really matters? What effect does this have on me?" And this is a question we should ask ourselves this morning, "What then about this difficulty, this trial. this challenge, that is staring you in the face?

What then? and Paul adds, "only that in every way, whether in pretense of in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this." The word "this" refers to the fact that Christ is proclaimed. Paul says, "In this I rejoice." And then he steps back and says it again. "Yes, and I will rejoice." What a victorious Christian life this man is living. Even when he is thrown into prison, even when others are turning against him, even when his good name is being called into question, Paul is rejoicing in the Lord, just like you and I must rejoice in the Lord.

The word "pretense" is a very loaded word. It indicates hypocrisy and duplicity. It is a cover-up of real motives. It is a facade. That is what the word "hypocrisy" means. Out of the original Greek language, it really means "to put on a mask." And to put on a mask was the idea in the Greek culture of the day - an actor would go on to a stage and play a role. He would assume a character, and he would have a script given to him. And when he would come onto the stage, he would put the mask on. And in Greek drama, it would be a smiling mask, or it would be a frowning mask, and it would just cover him up. And onstage, he would be, he would carry out a role. He would play a part. Someone of whom he was not. And then when the play was over, he would step off the stage and take the mask off and go back to being the real person that he is all along. That is what the word "hypocrisy" means.

One more thing we need to notice is Paul's focus is on Christ. This is the third time he has said, "Christ is proclaimed." That is what is dominant in Paul's mind. It is not his own suffering. It is not to build this insurmountable case against these other preachers who are against him. Paul has a higher agenda. There is a higher mountain to which Paul has ascended. And it is the summit of Christ. He is concerned about the name of Christ going forward.

And so, he says, "Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice." What an amazing Christian the apostle Paul was. "In this I rejoice." For Paul, it made no difference what happened to Paul as long as Christ is glorified , as long as the gospel is advanced. Paul rejoiced in spite of his circumstances because in this, in Christ being preached, Paul rejoiced.

The trigger point for Paul that pulls him up our of a wallowing pool of self-pity is the fact that through this, Christ is being preached. In other words, Paul is saying, "It is not about me. It is not about me having a comfortable life. It is not about me being in the spotlight. It is all about Christ, and Christ being in the spotlight, and people coming to believe in Christ, and people hearing the truth about Christ." Paul says, "That is what it is about." And then he circles back, and he says, "Yes, and I will rejoice."

There is a note of resolution here. There is a note of certainty here. And even as he looks to the future, and what lies in his future is he will stand trial before the imperial powers of Rome. And they will have the power of life and death. And that is hanging over him like a dark cloud. Paul has been in this prison for two long years and nevertheless, he says, "Not only do I rejoice, I will rejoice. And I am not going to be pulled down into the valley of despair. I will rejoice." At the end of the day, it is a choice to not allow our emotions to dominate our lives, but the anchor point to be what we believe and what we know to be true.

Dear Friends let us for a moment examine how it is for us? Do we rejoice in the midst of our suffering? I will tell you it is a lot easier to preach this than it is to live this. It is a challenge for each and every one of us. But I believe that God has placed all of us at different places of adversity so that His name will be glorified.

God Bless you.