We're gonna be in Philippians chapter 1, verses 12 through 18. If you would open up the Word of God this morning in your lap, whether it's on your phone or with a hard copy Bible, if you don't have access to a Bible, we do have some Bibles at our communion table in the back that we'd encourage you to grab. We highly encourage everybody to have God's Word open in their lap as we're teaching from it. And so I'll be reading verses 12 through verse 18 of Philippians chapter one. If you would, and you're able, can you please stand for the reading of God's word? Beginning in verse 12, the word of God says, I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. So it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. This is the Word of God this morning. You may be seated. The title of our message, as you've seen, is The Surprising Advance of the Gospel. That the gospel is spread in ways that, if it were up to us and by our design, would not be the way that we would choose to do it. But yet God, I think, enjoys surprising us in doing things that we would not expect him to do, or at least not in the way that he would expect, that he would expect us to do it. And so God works in surprising ways. I've seen that in my own life. Those of you who will attend our lunch this afternoon will hear more about this, but I'll share a little bit as we kind of introduce this passage of some of the surprising ways that God brought us here, particularly me and my family, to start this church. You know, I began looking for a position to teach God's Word in a church about two years ago. I was on staff at a local church in the valley as youth pastor and was feeling the Lord call me to more senior ministry, to be maybe a lead senior teaching pastor, whatever the title may entail, somewhere else. And I began to search, and I began to apply, and there actually was a local position available, which I was like, great, I don't wanna have to move. This would be so wonderful. And so I applied. and very quickly got tossed to the side, very gently and lovingly so. But this local position, they were looking for an experienced senior pastor, and I had never been a senior pastor anywhere before. But one thing that this search committee did, and it was from a denomination, not the individual church, is that, hey, we really like your application. Can we send it to the group that looks at potential church planters? And at the time, I didn't think much of it, but I said, sure, why not, and began to continue to search. Well, during my search, I couldn't help but shake this church planting bug or starting a new church. God just kind of kept bringing other people, other resources into my life to kind of lead me down that direction. And eventually I circled back to this denomination that said, could we put you in our church planting pile and began to interview with them, began to talk with them and began to realize that this may be what the Lord was calling me to do. And so I was advancing through this process, going through their vetting, going through their training. They invited me to come to the annual meeting of Converge out in Bellevue in Seattle. And while I was at this meeting with hundreds of other churches that are part of this denomination, lo and behold, I met some of the elders at the church that I had originally applied for. Now, they didn't know that I applied for the job. But I had met them, and they had actually invited me to come and to preach at their church, because they were still looking for a pastor. So I said, sure, let's build that connection. You know, we're going to be planting a church in the same family of network and churches. And I had the privilege of preaching there once a month for over a year, about nine, maybe 13 months, if my memory serves me. And that church grew very fond of me and my preaching, very graciously so, and some even asked if I would consider coming and being their pastor. But yet I was very far in advance in this church planting pipeline, and the Lord had moved in my heart in such a way to where I had great affection for this church, but knew that God was calling me to plant this church here. And so I spoke that to some of the elders as they were inquiring of my interest for their position. And they very lovingly said, that makes sense. We want to be behind you, want to be with you. And to this day, that church has been one of the primary supporting churches of us here at Harvest. And so when I applied for a position, I thought I would be a pastor at this church. But what ended up happening, to my surprise, is that this church ended up being one of the churches to help send us and support us here this morning. God works in surprising ways to advance his gospel. Instead of there being one church with one gospel message being preached in this area, now to this day, because what God has done, and yes, they have a senior pastor at their church as well now, now there are two gospel preaching churches here in the area. God works in surprising ways. And we see that here in this text, and those are gonna be my two points this morning, how God advances the gospel in ways that we would seem surprised by. The first is that the advance of the gospel comes through suffering, as we look at Paul's imprisonment in the first few verses. And then secondly, we'll see that the gospel comes through sometimes rivalry, bad motives, And yet God is still able to use even that to advance his gospel. And so let us look at the first few verses once again. And we'll look at this idea of the advancement of the gospel through suffering. We'll begin in verse 12. What is going on here in this text? One thing we may not realize is that when Paul is writing to the Philippians, Paul is in jail. He is in prison in Rome. He's writing back to this church that he helped start a number of years ago to encourage them, to rejoice in what God is doing in them, but he's doing so while in jail, while in prison. And this could have seemed like a hindrance to the gospel being advanced. Here you have Paul, this amazing apostle, who's been traveling all throughout the region, and it seems like everywhere he stops, a church is started. Paul started the the church in Philippi. He would go on to Thessalonica and there we have the Thessalonian Church. He would go on to Athens and and preach at the Areopagus. He would start the church in Corinth and Ephesus and it looked like everywhere Paul would go a new church would be started more people would be one to Christ, but After he headed to Jerusalem, he was arrested, and now he is imprisoned. And many of the believers, particularly the believers in Philippians, may have lost courage, been sad, been upset, because now the gospel is no longer advancing because Paul is in chains. How can the gospel move forward? You see, Paul was arrested in Jerusalem for preaching the gospels. The Jews stirred up as a result of his preaching. They wanted him killed. They wanted him arrested. And so, very much like we see with Jesus, they went to the Romans, and the Romans indeed saw Paul as an usurper, someone who's stirring up controversy, and he was jailed. He was imprisoned and sent off to Rome and was under house arrest. But yet, God was able to use this to advance the gospel. That even though Paul himself would be bound by change, the gospel could not be held by those change. The gospel would remain unbound and God would use this for his advancement. And Paul shares how that advancement takes place. Being in jail, Paul would have been chained to a guard 24-7. 24-7 he would have been chained to a guard. And so this guard, the imperial guards, would have had a front row seat as part of their occupation, as part of Paul's imprisonment to his personal faith in Jesus. They would have been chained to him and watched his daily routine from morning to evening. They would have heard him pray, and I'm sure if Paul didn't already pray out loud, he would indeed, while chained to a Roman guard so that he could hear the relationship, the good news of the gospel as a result of Paul's prayers. They would have heard and seen Paul reading and studying the scriptures. They would have sat in on paul's teaching because others would come and visit him as he was under house arrest And they would have seen his piety his living for the lord That he would have a joy that surpasses all understanding Although he is imprisoned and shamed and likely to be sentenced to death at some point in the future and yet paul is full of hope They would have seen it all. And I'm confident that Paul would have gone out of his way to strike up particular conversations with each one of those guards, getting to know their names and sharing the good news of the gospel with them personally. And as a result, rather than hindering the gospel, what happened is Paul had a captive audience. They thought Paul was held captive, but really they were chaining a captive audience to the most effective evangelist probably through all time. And as a result, some of the imperial guards, these Roman soldiers, indeed came to faith in Christ. But the gospel was moving forward. We know that some came to saving faith because as Paul starts to conclude his letter in Philippians, he gives his salutations. He tells you of those who he wants you to greet in his absence. And so Philippians 4, 21 through 22, Paul is writing as he closes this letter to the Philippians, greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household. Paul's imprisonment resulted in Roman guards coming to saving faith in Jesus Christ. And now they are brothers in Christ and they are greeting this Philippian church with Paul from afar. Even though Paul was bound, the gospel could not be bound. It would continue to move forward. That this would work out for the advancement of the gospel, not the hindrance of the gospel. And so these Roman guards were some of those in which the gospel was being advanced through. But by the very nature of Paul being under house arrest is he did enjoy some freedoms. He could not leave his house and he was guarded by a Roman guard at all times, literally connected to him, but he was allowed many visitors. We know that he had visitors because the Philippians sent Epaphroditus to him and he was greatly encouraged by his visit and fellowship and even gifts that he brought to Paul. And so this this resulted and everybody knew that the apostle Paul was at house arrest in that house and that he was being arrested and held there because of Christ. And so word got out People's interests were piqued even though Paul could not go out and tell people the gospel because of the situation and because how word had spread people were now interested to come and to see Paul and hear this message that this man would be willing to be imprisoned for. And so we had a number of visitors besides these Roman guards come. We see this described in Acts 28 verses 23 through 24. Says, when they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in great numbers, the house in which he was under house arrest. And from morning till evening, he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus, both from the law of Moses and from the prophets. And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. You know, in all of other—in all of Paul's other journeys, he had to go out into the synagogues, into the markets in order to preach God's Word, but yet when he got to Rome, he got to stay home. And those same people came to him to hear his message. These were both Jews and Gentiles, and Paul reasoned with them from the scriptures and told them of the kingdom of God, trying to convince them about putting their faith and trust in Jesus. And he did this for two whole years in Rome. Acts 28, 30 through 31. He lived there two whole years at his own expense. and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. Without hindrance. that Paul would say that these chains are not a hindrance, but instead they're an opportunity to speak to people about why I am here, why I'm willing to suffer in many ways unjustly. It is because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And I plead with you this day to be set free from your sins. Even though I'm captive here, I know that I'm actually free because I'm no longer enslaved to sin and God offers you that freedom as well through Christ Jesus. These are very much the things that Paul likely would have said to this audience. And his message very likely became all the more compelling because of his circumstance. So the gospel advanced through this, which is the exact opposite of what those who put him there hoped would happen. We need to lock this man up. We need to keep him quiet. But instead, what they did was they gave him a greater platform, a captive audience, more effective ministry. And so not only was Paul's ministry positively affected by this, but there were even ripple effects as we read on in Philippians. Look at verse 14 once again. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Paul's strong testimony, his living example, emboldened others to preach the news without fear, without any hindrance. That there is a multiplied effect of the advancement of the gospel that God is working, not only through Paul, but through other brothers who are encouraged by Paul's example of someone who suffers well for Christ. And if he can do that while chained in in jail under house arrest, What can I do as I'm free to walk about in my hometown and witness to my neighbors and my brothers? Others were emboldened by his example and the gospel continued to move forward. You see, God's most effective outreach strategy has often been through suffering. We see the example here in the life of Paul, but there are countless examples in scripture of those who suffered for the truth of the gospel. And as a result, the gospel was advanced. That even though enemies tried to keep them captive or hinder their witness, all they did was multiply the effectiveness of this ministry. God works through our suffering for his purposes. Examples in scripture would be Joseph in Genesis, his brothers selling him to slavery, but instead through that slavery, Joseph is able one day to rescue his own family from famine as he is elevated to a position in Egypt second only to Pharaoh. We see it in the life of Paul that it would seem that the more that Paul would suffer, the more the gospel would go forth. We see it in church history that the more the church was persecuted, the more the message of the gospel was received by others. we see it ultimately in in Jesus that the gospel has at its root hope in suffering that Christ is the only one who suffered unjustly because he had no sin but yet through his suffering we have forgiveness for our sins. That he would take our place, bear our punishment, and give us his reward if we put our faith and trust in him and him alone. The gospel is often advanced through suffering. These are just some biblical examples, but I want to give you some contemporary examples. There are two that most famously come to mind as those who have suffered well for Christ, for the gospel, and as a result, God has advanced the gospel in mighty ways through their lives. You may know of some of these individuals. One is Joni Erickson Tada. Joni Eareckson-Dotta, her ministry started in some ways through tragedy. At 17 years old, she suffered a tragic diving accident in which she became a quadriplegic. 17 years old. She suffered with anger and depression and yes, even doubts about her faith. But the Lord used her circumstance to bring others into greater and greater faith in Jesus. She found that although she couldn't move hardly any of her limbs, she could put a paintbrush and a pen in her mouth and paint some amazing paintings, but go on to write a number of books that talk about the hope that we have even in a broken world. that even though there's not much hope in her life physically here on this earth, given her physical condition, that she could be filled with hope because of her faith in Jesus Christ. And as a result, she's become, in many ways, the modern expert on what it is to suffer as a Christian. She speaks of a joy that surpasses understanding, and she lives it out in such a way that people not only begin to understand it through her teaching, but they get to see it on display through the way that she lives her life. She points others to a future hope that is in Jesus and in the world that is yet to come, not the world that we have here today. She's inspired others to find joy and hope despite their circumstances by looking to Jesus. And she's even emboldened other Christians to be stronger in their own witness with the same idea. If she can suffer like that and still love the Lord and serve the Lord, then clearly in my circumstance, I face far less suffering. And so I can be all the more bold and all the more courageous in my own face. Another example. is Jim and Elizabeth Elliott, famous missionaries. You may know the story of Jim Elliott. Him and a group of men were seeking to bring the gospel to an unsaved people group in the middle of a jungle, only accessible through plane and aviation. And as they were making connection with these people, they were tragically murdered by spears. And what everyone thought was tragedy, something that that made no sense God used in order to advance his gospel in a mighty mighty way you see when Jim and and all those men were were killed by those people their wives then were put in a situation where they could minister to this people group, this group of lost souls who, yes, murdered their husbands, but yet were lost in Christ. And these women, they ministered to them, they met some of their physical needs as sickness went through this tribe, and as a result, many came to faith. tragic circumstance, tons of suffering, but yet God used it to bring the gospel to a brand new people group who have never heard the hope of Jesus. More than that, when news of what happened with Jim Elliot and these other missionaries and and the impact that God made through their widowed wives There were record-setting enlistments of young men from Bible colleges, particularly Wheaton, to go out into some of the hardest reached areas that instead of scaring people off from doing some of this, their example inspired other men to go out into the field and to share the good news of the gospel. There's a great quote from Jim Elliott that I want to read to you this morning. He spoke this prior to his death. He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. This is the hope of the gospel. This is how God uses suffering to advance the good news of salvation to all those who need to believe. All these things, they may look like hindrances, becoming a quadriplegic, seeing these men murdered, but yet God used it to advance his purposes in the same way that they thought that they could contain the gospel by chaining up Paul God was able to use it to make an even greater impact. Scripture speaks of this principle over and over and over again, that through suffering, God is able to bring about His good purposes. Romans 8.28 speaks of this wonderful truth. And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. God uses all things for our good and for those who are called according to his purposes. And so for us here this morning, let me correct any misunderstandings that you or I may have about what it is to be a Christian. We wrongly think that the hope that Christ offers is freedom from suffering. That is wrong, my friends. Instead, what Christ offers us is a purpose in our suffering. We're not free from suffering, but we're free in knowing that God can use our suffering for his good purposes, namely the advancement of his gospel. Suffering should not be the surprising means of advancing the gospel. For you, as a brother or sister in Christ, it is the expected means for advancing the gospel because it is such a powerful witness that our hope is not here in this world, but it is with Christ in the world that he has promised when he comes again or when we go to be with him. Suffering has been a part of the Christian faith from the very beginning. The Old Testament spoke of the sufferings of Christ and how he would bring salvation to those through that. Isaiah 53 5 says, but he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. And with his wounds, we are healed. Christ's suffering was for our benefit. Paul's suffering was for our benefit and the benefit of the gospel. He speaks in Colossians 1 24. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh I'm filling up what is lacking in Christ's affliction for the sake of his body that is the church. Paul saw his role as an apostle to suffer for Christ and his church. That's what he was called to. That's what his ministry was. And you and I, we are to have this same attitude. James 1, 2, count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let your steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in all. Nothing. God shapes us into the image of Christ through our suffering, so that when we witness with our words, it has that exclamation point at the end of a good example, of a life that is living out the gospel as we speak the gospel to others. And so, brothers and sisters in Christ, are you prepared to see the gospel advance in your circumstances that may be less than ideal? Are you prepared to suffer for the gospel in the hope that the gospel would be advanced by your suffering? It may come through illness. You may face a difficult illness diagnosis. Are you firm in your salvation, knowing the hope of the gospel? Will you use this diagnosis to speak of a greater hope than physical healing, the hope of being with God because of what Christ has done? Maybe you're in a situation where you're being mistreated. At home, at work, through friendships, will you lash out in return? Returning evil for evil? Or will you endure mistreatment and return evil for kindness? Will you have the same mind of Christ that as he was being persecuted, he cried out, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Are you just discontent with where you are in life? Is life not all that you hoped it would be right now? Do you wish you worked somewhere else, lived somewhere else? How can you show others what it is to be content in all circumstances because of the surpassing joy of knowing Christ? The reality is if you can learn to suffer well as a Christian, you can be a bolder witness for the truth of the gospel. And your bold witness could have the multiplied effect of emboldening other brothers and sisters in Christ to do the same as well. The gospel, surprisingly, but in many ways not surprisingly, is often advanced through suffering. Let me move quickly through our second point. Here in this passage, we see another way in which the gospel surprisingly advances. It's not just through suffering, but it's through rivalry. So what kind of rivalry is going on here? We'll read in verse 15. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed and in that I. rejoice so what is going on here who are the people that are preaching christ out of rivalry to paul well by no means is this an ideal situation and paul may be quite the optimist here in seeing bad motives but knowing god's good result who are these people Well, let me say first and foremost that it does not appear that these people who are preaching in competition or in rivalry with Paul, they don't appear to be false teachers. Paul doesn't call out their message for being an incomplete message or a false message of the gospel. No, he says that they do indeed preach the gospel, and so their message isn't what's wrong, it's their motivation. If the message was wrong, Paul has never shied away from correcting false teachers. Just read with me from Galatians 1 9, as he corrected a false gospel that was working its way through that church. Verse 9 says, as we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one that you received, let him be accursed. So Paul is not speaking that way about these individuals. So we know their message is likely the true gospel message, but their motives are not pure. Those preaching the true gospel, but with bad motives. You see, Paul was imprisoned. And there were other people ministering and starting churches and pastoring, and unfortunately, some of them, quite honestly, probably looked at this as an opportunity to make more of themselves. that Paul was stealing the spotlight, who could compete with this apostle, but now that he is locked up, now it's my time to shine. I've been playing second string for so long, and now I'm finally on the starting team. I can get more honor, more respect, more praise for the ministry of me and what I am preaching. See, their motives were not good. Maybe they wanted to boast about reaching more people than Paul this last year because he was chained up or whatever it may be. But God is still able to use their ministry to further the gospel message. Instead of being overly critical, which Paul likely had every right to do because clearly there's something wrong going on with these people, Paul instead chooses to rejoice at what God is able to do and what is otherwise imperfect circumstances. And what an example Paul truly is in this. Here are these people who care more about themselves, more about their reputation, more about their honor as they do God's work, and yet Paul, humble Paul, doesn't care one way or the other. Whether my name be praised or whether my name be forgotten, as long as the name of Jesus moves forward. We see the same attitude In another one of Paul's writings, 1 Corinthians 3, verses five through seven, as people were, not necessarily the teachers having rivalry, but followers of the teachers were having rivalry with one another. Some in the Corinthian church were speaking this way, in verse five of Corinthians 3. They were following Apollos, they were following Paul, they were following Peter, and deciding who was better than the other. And Paul responds, what then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed. as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything but only God who gives the growth." See, Paul is able to rejoice even though these people are serving out of rivalry to himself because people are coming to faith in Jesus and that's all that Paul cares about. Doesn't care about his record, his fame, his glory, but instead he chooses to rejoice that others are coming to Christ. The gospel message does not need good motives in order to be effective. I'll say that again. The gospel does not need good motives in order to be effective. Now, we should have good motives, but it's not a necessary component. If God can use unbelievers to accomplish his purpose, then he can use us as messed up, imperfect, mixed up believers to still accomplish his purpose as well. As an example of bad motives, but an effective gospel in the Old Testament, I think of the story of Jonah. Jonah, a reluctant prophet, sent to the people of Nineveh to share a message of repentance. You see, Nineveh was a city that was part of Assyria, this kingdom that was known for being ruthless and oppressing and committing atrocities towards the people of Israel. And God sends Jonah, a Jewish man, to go preach a message of deliverance to them. And Jonah, because he hates them for what they've done to his people, does not want to go. Goes the opposite direction. You may be familiar with the story of Jonah, that he goes the opposite direction, is caught up in a storm, is thrown overboard, swallowed by a fish, spat out, and said to Nineveh that he couldn't run away from the task that God had given him. And so he finally gets to Nineveh, and he's told to preach this message. And you can only imagine the type of enthusiasm that Jonah had in preaching this message. The answer, none at all. God, if you want me to do it, I'll do it, but I'm not gonna put my heart into it. And so reading in Jonah chapter three, verses four through five, it says, Jonah began to go into the city, a day's journey, and he called out, yet 40 days in Nineveh shall be overthrown. And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest of them to the least of them. And so he is obedient to the Lord. And as a result, the people actually believed and repented and turned to God. Look at verse 10. When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he said he would do to them. And he did not do it. And one of the reasons why I know Jonah's heart was not in it, his motives were not good, he was doing this out of just pure obedience. God, you're making me do this. is because we see Jonah's reaction to their repentance. Jonah chapter 4 verses 1 through 3, But it displeased Jonah exceedingly. He was angry and he prayed to the Lord and said, O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish, for I knew you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live." He's a bit dramatic. Would you agree? Here he is ready to die because the message of forgiveness has gone out and been accepted by these wicked people. And yes, they've turned to the Lord. And Jonah begrudgingly quotes one of the most famous descriptions of God. I knew you were gonna forgive them. I just knew it. I'm so upset. And so you can only imagine as he was going around the city for 40 days, the type of enthusiasm or the motives that he had in preaching this message. Repent, believe, God's gonna judge you for your sin. You could only imagine the apathy that was in his heart. But God didn't need good motives for Jonah. God does this work despite our motives at time. And God, rightfully so, challenges Jonah's attitude at the end of this book, Jonah 411. God rebukes Jonah and says, should I not pity Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle? That this is a city of 120,000 lost people, so lost they don't know their right hand from their left. Should I not have pity on them? And this book ends, leaving us with this picture of whether or not Jonah's heart would be softened. I hope it was. I know mine is, as I see that my motives aren't always pure themselves. You see, the power of the gospel is in the message, not the messenger. The power of the gospel is in the message, not the messenger. Romans 1 16, for I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. The power of this message, it's not in the messenger, it's not in the motives, it's not in the eloquence or the speech, it's in God. That God can use imperfect people with imperfect motives to advance his gospel. We see that in the example of Jonah. We see Paul acknowledge this here with the Philippians, that some are preaching Christ not out of love for Paul or love for God, even, but out of rivalry, out of seeking honor or glory or some sort of selfish motivation from their self, but yet the message is still the message, and so the message has power because the gospel is the power of God for salvation. And in some ways, this is good news for us, because we still have mixed motives in ourselves today. Do we not? I do. I'll confess to you this morning that my motives are not always pure. I try, through the help of the Holy Spirit, to serve God faithfully out of love and obedience and thankfulness to him, but there are times in which I seek glory for myself. or I may be more motivated for another reason, or I may feel a sense of rivalry with someone else. But does that keep God from doing his work? No, it does not. You may have discovered the selfish motives of a beloved pastor, someone who made a difference in your life, who spoke God's word to you, maybe brought you to salvation, or helped you grow in a particular way, only to maybe see them in a moral failing. To maybe see them be conceited or puffed up. To find out that maybe their persona while preaching was different than their persona one-on-one, that they're a little bit of a jerk. Or they weren't very kind to you at times. And all of this could result into you questioning your faith. Because God used that person in your life to bring you to this point one way or another. Does that nullify the effect of the gospel in your life? Absolutely not. That God uses imperfect people, of which that person may be just one example of many, to grow you in the faith, to even bring you to faith. Sometimes we feel a sense of rivalry with neighboring churches. That we seek to grow our church by tearing down others because we have better music or better preacher or better coffee. Because people choose church for coffee, right? No. We may talk badly about the ministry in order to build our ministry up, but let me ask you this question. Are they teaching a clear gospel? Are people being one to Christ as a result of their ministry? If so, then let us rejoice as Paul rejoices here. Their motives may not be pure in all their ways. Ours may not. We may differ on important theological distinctions or doctrines, but nevertheless, know that God is able to use a variety of means to further his gospel. Yes, we need to be warned about false teachings with false gospels, but we also need to know how to lovingly celebrate the ministry of even other churches in this area as they do kingdom work. Your own motives may not always be pure in what you do to serve the Lord. You could have wrong motives for doing what you clearly know you ought to be doing in the Christian faith. We all know that we're supposed to share our faith, and my hope is that you want to share your faith, but you may do it out of sense of obligation, out of duty, out of someone guilting you in to do it. But can God still use those moments in which your motives are not pure as you're sharing your faith to bring someone to faith? Absolutely. Should we wait until our motives always align perfectly with what God has called us to do? No. Because then we would never do what God has called us to do. You may come to church because you have to, because it makes you look good, because you want to meet nice people. Maybe you're looking to meet the nice person that'll be your husband or wife one day. These might be your motivations, but should you be coming because you want to fellowship with the saints and honor God and worship him together? Yes. Our motives are not always the best. And so, in some ways, I find great comfort in rejoicing in what God is doing. Yes, we should seek to have the correct motives, the right reasons for doing the right things, but also know that God can use it regardless. And so let us have the attitude that Paul has here, seeking to have the right motives, but only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed. And in that, we as brothers and sisters in Christ can rejoice. Because God will advance his gospel using whatever means he chooses. Surprising means that we would not choose for ourselves the means of suffering, maybe even rivalry between persons or between churches, but yet the gospel is unstoppable. God says in his word, Isaiah 55, 11, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth. It shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. God has sent Jesus and the gospel message into this world to save sinners. And he will accomplish that purpose. Jesus himself spoke this to his disciples, his apostles, in Matthew 16, 18. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And so my encouragement for you as we close is let us go and let us advance the gospel together. And whatever means that God has called us to do it, maybe through our suffering, maybe even through some mixed motives, but let us celebrate what God is doing as people come to Christ. Let me pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the good news of the gospel message, that Christ has come, that he has borne our sin in our place, that he has risen again and is coming again soon to make all things new. Lord, would we be a people, your people, who go and advance the gospel through whatever means you have called us to do, through our suffering, through our imperfect motives at times, but also through our love and obedience before you. God, and as we do this together, would more be emboldened and encouraged to do that very same thing, to send the gospel to the ends of the earth, beginning here in Liberty Lake and reaching everyone whom you have elected unto salvation. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.