The circumstances of our lives are opportunities to extend the Gospel.

Paul said his circumstances had turned out for the greater progress of the Gospel (Philippians 1:12). Although Paul was in jail, he knew his mission was not over. Although he could no longer travel, he knew his life had not come to the end. His opportunities to preach the Gospel had not ended but rather, through his circumstances, had been extended.

Paul’s words for the greater progress in the Greek language literally mean “to cut before.” This term was used to describe an advanced team of soldiers who would prepare the way for the army that was soon to follow. Paul was saying, “Although I am in jail and am no longer able to travel, I want you to know that my circumstances are opportunities for the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be advanced.” Paul was a spiritual trailblazer for Jesus.

“My imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else,” Paul wrote (Philippians 1:13) of the 9,000 soldiers who were housed in a palace nearby, Emperor Tiberius’s special bodyguards.

We would be biblically wise to view every circumstance of our lives the way Paul viewed his and ask ourselves the question: “How can my circumstance advance the Gospel?” Unfortunately, we are often content to do the same old things — business as usual.

Opportunities for Advancement

Paul was under 24-hour surveillance by members of the Praetorian Guard. He would be chained to one of the soldiers for approximately four hours at a time, then the guard would be replaced by another. In a 24-hour period of time, six soldiers would be guarding him.

Had I been in Paul’s predicament, rather than writing letters of encouragement, I would probably have been writing to family or friends and complaining about how tight the chains were around my wrists, how long or short the chains were on my ankles, how foul the soldiers’ language was, and just how generally uncomfortable I was. However, Paul said in his letter that his “circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the Gospel” (Philippians 1:12). Paul saw his time with those soldiers as an opportunity to tell them about the Lord Jesus Christ.

Imagine the talks the Praetorian Guard must have had back at the palace:

“What did you do yesterday?”

“I spent four hours chained to a guy named Paul over at the jail.”

“Who’s he?”

“A guy from Tarsus.”

“Why is he in prison?”

“They sent him here to go on trial because he believes in somebody named Jesus.”

“Who’s Jesus?”

“Paul says Jesus is a Jewish rabbi who died on a cross and that He paid the price for the sins of the whole world.”

“You don’t mean it. That’s what the guy said?”

“He did!”

“Man, I’m guarding him tomorrow. I’ll see what he has to say.”

Because of his time with those soldiers, we know Paul’s influence extended even into Caesar’s household, because he later wrote to the believers in Philippi: “All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household” (Philippians 4:22). Because Paul was winning the Praetorian Guard to Christ, they were witnessing to others — all the way up to Caesar’s palace. What an opportunity to extend the Gospel!

There are times in life when we may feel that we are chained to a circumstance we cannot escape. Perhaps it is a job we dislike or a health issue. But even in those circumstances, God can use us to get the Gospel of Jesus Christ to places where it has never been. Perhaps a stay in the hospital is an opportunity to tell a nurse or doctor about our faith in the Lord. We need to realize that things do not just “happen” to Christians. If Jesus is first in our life, there will be opportunities to extend the Gospel.

Opportunities to Encourage Others

Paul’s arrival in Rome emboldened others to witness for the Lord. “Most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear” (Philippians 1:14). When they saw Paul witnessing under adverse circumstances, in jail and facing death, it encouraged some of the more hesitant, timid, and fearful believers in the church in Rome to do the same.

Courage begets courage; enthusiasm begets enthusiasm. A bold witness for the Lord may encourage someone else to be a bold witness for Jesus Christ. When one Christian gets set on fire and starts witnessing for the Lord, it sparks a fire in the heart of someone else. Paul felt that his witnessing caused others to be witnesses.

Paul then pointed out that “some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife but some also from good will; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the Gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment” (Philippians 1:15-17). When we read about the New Testament churches, we sometimes get the idea that they were perfect, that they never had any problems. If we think the early church was perfect, we are thinking about a church that never existed.

When we read the various letters to the New Testament churches, we discover that every problem we have today was found in some form in the early church, including jealousy among those serving. The church is made up of people — saved sinners. None are perfect.

What was Paul to do? He could have given the Praetorian Guard an earful about how sorry and low-down those so-called “Christians” were. However, had he done that, the angels would have wept, and a lost world would have sneered. We must be extremely careful about how we respond to others, particularly if they respond to us with envy.

Opportunities to See Our Own Inconsistencies and Failures

George Whitefield and John Wesley were contemporaries in the Great Awakening. Whitefield was somewhat stronger in the doctrines of grace, election, and predestination while Wesley was somewhat stronger in the areas of human responsibility and free will. Consequently, they had some doctrinal disagreements.

Someone who knew about their disagreement once asked Whitefield, “Do you expect to see John Wesley in Heaven?” Whitefield responded, “I do not. I expect Mr. Wesley to be so close to the throne and me so far from the throne that I won’t be able to see him at all.” That is the kind of response God wants us to have.

Paul responded to “those with impure motives, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice” (Philippians 1:18). It matters not whether anyone does something the way we do it or who gets the attention for it. The bottom line is that Jesus Christ is preached and that people come to know Him.

Do we rejoice when God blesses others’ ministries? Rather than being bothered by that, we should be filled with amazement as to why He blesses our own. The closer we get to Jesus, the more we will see our own inconsistencies and failures. When we do, we are not going to have a lot of time to sit around passing judgment on others because we will be amazed that God ever chose to use us the way He has.

 

Adapted from The Joy Book: The Christian’s Abundant Joy in the Darkest Nights by Dr. James O. Davis (Billion Soul Publishing 2024). Used by permission. The Joy Book will be released on September 10 at jamesodavis.com.

Dr. James O. Davis is co-founder of Global Church Network, a growing coalition of more than 2,750 Christian ministries and 700,000 churches who are synergizing and mobilizing their efforts to help finish the Great Commission by 2030. Global Church Divinity School has helped train tens of thousands of Christian leaders since 2002.