They All Seek Their Own Interests

Paul was in prison writing to the Christians in Philippi to encourage and to strengthen them in their walks of faith in Jesus Christ. And so he was giving them instructions and exhortations in Christian living. And then he said:

“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also” (Philippians 2:19-24 ESV).

Now, when I read this, what stood out to me big and bold was verse 21 which says, “For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” And I immediately questioned, “Who are they?” He doesn’t say. And so I looked at some commentaries and they don’t all agree. But does it matter who “they” were? Or is what matters is that “they” were a multiple of people who were being contrasted with Timothy who was one person? I think that is really the point here that Timothy was definitely in the minority.

So, this is like the majority versus the minority. The majority are being described here as those who all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. And the inference could have been that they were those who were serving Paul in some capacity but who Paul believed did more to serve their own self-interest and would not be people of sincerity of heart who would really and truly care about the Christians in Philippi. So that really is the second point, isn’t it? The majority are self-serving, not God-serving.

But the fact that Paul said that he had no one like Timothy, for they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ, would seem to indicate that these were people who had at least professed faith in Jesus Christ, for why would he say that about the ungodly of this world who never made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ? And they could have also been fellow ministers of the gospel of Christ who were not really serving Christ but their own self-interests, perhaps like many pastors today.

Well, this definitely speaks of the spiritual condition of the church at large (not every congregation) here in America where so many “pastors” are seeking their own self-interests and not those of Jesus Christ. For it seems the majority of them are following marketing books and seminars and training in how to market their “churches” to the world in order to “draw in large crowds of people from the world” into their gatherings. And this is taking precedence over the teachings of Christ and his will for his church.

And Paul saw only Timothy as a true disciple of Christ and minister of the gospel of Christ who genuinely cared for the sheep of God’s pasture and who would minister to them in the way that Jesus would minister to them. For Timothy was of proven character as someone whose life was dedicated to Jesus Christ and to serving the Lord and who truly had the spiritual lives of God’s people as his central focus and not the trappings of this sinful world. For he shared the same concern for them as Paul had, which was of Christ.

And sadly, I believe this is a true picture of the American church overall, but not including every congregation. The majority of leaders in these “churches” appear to all be caught up in the trappings of this world and with entertaining the world and attracting the world to their gatherings. Thus, many are forsaking and neglecting the true spiritual needs of their congregations, and thus the church is not operating as the biblical church, but often more like a social club or a civic center attracting the world to themselves.

And since the goal of the majority appears to be to draw in large crowds of people from the world, they are altering the character of God/Christ and the character of the gospel of Christ and the character of the true church, the body of Christ, in order to make them all more appealing and attractive and acceptable to human flesh and to the ungodly, which includes many professers of faith in Jesus Christ who are still living in deliberate and habitual sin and not in walks of obedience to the Lord Jesus.

And so the Lord Jesus is calling on all the “Timothys” (male and female) of the world to take his messages to the church and to the people of the world, for they are the ones that our Lord finds faithful and who have the same mission as what the Lord has. They are the ones who have true biblical and godly concern for the body of Christ and for the people of the world, that they should know Christ in truth, and that they walk in him in truth and in righteousness and in obedience to our Lord’s commands (New Covenant).

And they could be garbage collectors and homemakers and store clerks and seamstresses and mothers and fathers and grandmothers and grandfathers who are dedicated to serving the Lord with their lives without title, and without recognition, and without large followings, but who God can use to get the truth of the gospel to the people of this world because they love Jesus with all their hearts, and because their lives are committed to serving him. And I believe that is the really the point here.

So, be a Timothy! Don’t be one of the majority who all seek their own interests and not the interests of Jesus Christ. Study the Scriptures in their context, and learn what the interests of Christ really are, and then follow Jesus and his word and not the culture and not fads and not traditions and not humans who are seeking their own interests and not those of Jesus Christ. But when you do, then expect to be rejected and hated and cast aside for your walks of obedience to the Lord Jesus. But stay the course!!

‘Til The Storm Passes By

By Thomas Mosie Lister

In the dark of the midnight have I oft hid my face

While the storm howls above me, and there's no hiding place

'Mid the crash of the thunder, Precious Lord, hear my cry

Keep me safe till the storm passes by

Many times Satan whispered

There is no use to try

For there's no end of sorrow, there's no hope by and by

But I know Thou art with me, and tomorrow I'll rise

Where the storms never darken the skies

Till the storm passes over, till the thunder sounds no more

Till the clouds roll forever from the sky

Hold me fast, let me stand in the hollow of Thy hand

Keep me safe till the storm passes by

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_obOSQoOpQ

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