Sermon 05.10.2026: Yes, And I Will Rejoice

The apostle Paul experienced hardships for his preaching. He was imprisoned, kicked out of towns, and suffered harm. He was willing to talk about his struggles, but he never stopped there. 

It can be easy to see our struggles as the conclusion of a story.

It can be more challenging to see them as a part of a bigger story. 

In Paul's letter to the Philippians, Paul reminds us to look for the bigger thread that weaves our stories together, and, in the midst of his suffering, he makes the decision to rejoice.

Scripture

Philippians 1:1-18a

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops[a] and deacons:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I thank my God for every remembrance of you, always in every one of my prayers for all of you, praying with joy for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, for all of you are my partners in God’s grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the tender affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what really matters, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harves of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually resulted in the progress of the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ, and most of the brothers and sisters, having been made confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, dare to speak the word with greater boldness and without fear.

Some proclaim Christ from envy and rivalry but others from goodwill. These proclaim Christ out of love, knowing that I have been put here for the defense of the gospel; the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment. What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true, and in that I rejoice.

Yes, and I will rejoice

Sermon

Philippi was a city in Macedonia, and a prominent Roman colony. The Book of Acts tells us that Paul founded a church there on his second missionary journey and that Paul and Silas were accused of disturbing the city with their preaching. 

Because for Paul to proclaim that we have one Lord— and that our Lord is definitely not Caesar—that was a problematic message. What Caesars are we building golden idols to today? Paul is writing this letter from jail, imprisoned by Rome for being too political with his sermons. And even in his afflictions, he can see where God is at work in his life. 

There’s a cartoon by Inherit the Mirth that is called St Paul’s Letter to the Bergmans and in it, Paul writes, “I Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, greet you in the name of the Lord, and ask you to keep your dog out of my petunias”. 

I love the idea of that letter from Paul. And it makes me want to elevate all of my correspondence. If I were to write a letter to someone whose dog was destroying my flower beds, I feel like I would be nicer to them if I first greeted them in the name of the Lord. Right? It would remind me of who I want to be, and how we are connected. 

And Paul does that well in all of his letters. To the saints, he begins. 

To call the Philippians saints is not to make a judgment about how perfect and Mother Theresa-ish they are. It is to ground the entire letter from the beginning with the reminder that God has made them holy and how they live and move and have their being is in the waters of God’s holiness which makes them holy. 

He offers grace and peace and gratitude. And that frames the entire letter, and the relationship, in positive terms of connection and belonging. 

How different would our interactions be if we started every argument with “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God for every remembrance of you, always in every one of my prayers for all of you, praying with joy for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now….” 

It’s science, actually, what Paul is doing. Throughout this entire section, Paul is showing us how to cognitively reframe what is happening in our lives. He’s in prison, and not a club fed sort of prison where Caesar’s friends get sent. He’s undergoing hardship and persecution. And he still chooses to start with gratitude and connection. He continues to chose joy, when we could understand why despair would make more sense. 

Comedian Pete Holmes has a strategy of saying “yes, thank you” to whatever happens in his life. He says, “If you can just say ‘yes’ to what is, that’s all you need. It short circuits your brain if you say ‘yes, thank you’ to it. Almost instantly. Flight is delayed. Yes, thank you. As if it is what you wanted. And then you realize you’re in an airport, and you’ll be in an hour later. And it can be a clean breath and a recognition you’re alive. And maybe you see the sun coming through the windows and maybe you realize people used to die in covered wagons on this journey you’ll take in 4 hours.” 

All of a sudden, because of “yes, thank you”, the delayed flight is not the same source of negativity and anger. It is still an inconvenience, to be sure. But when it is a situation that is beyond your control—Rome has put you in jail. The FAA has reduced the number of flights into SFO. Etc.—it is a reminder that you have choices about how you want to exist in this world we’re in. Even in moments beyond your control, you still have a choice about who you want to be. 

And so as we read these words from Paul, and I invite you to take the bulletin with you this week so you’ll have the readings from Philippians at your fingers, I invite you to hear Paul writing to Calvary, not just writing to First Presbyterian Philippi. 

He’s writing to people in a Roman colony who have to be careful not to upset the whims of an insecure and tyrannical Caesar. He’s writing to people who know of the conflict created by living in anxious times and anxiety filled systems. He’s writing to people who don’t want to give into despair, but who are having trouble finding their way past the bad news in the news cycle. He’s writing to us. 

And he writes to remind us of our connectedness and about how all good work, even work done by individuals, is done because of the support of a community. He lifts up gratitude. He reminds us of the good work and ministry we have already participated in. He points us to hope for and about the future. “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” 

Paul points the Philippians to that future hope we have in our faith. We cannot always see the finish line, but we run the race, one step at a time, confident in the one who calls us, who supports us, who equips us with community to run alongside us. 

At our monthly session meeting this past week, the elders were talking about updated language for our vision and mission statements, to better reflect this particular moment in the life of the church. And one of the challenges of mission statements is that they are often so vague and generic that they could be describing any church in the country. 

“To Welcome, Grow, and Serve in the Grace of Christ’s love” is one illustration of a vague statement that carries no flavor of the particular congregation, or honestly of what their vision is. 

You also can’t be too long, or too specific. But it should give a sense of what separates one church from another. Not in a better or a worse comparison, but because each congregation is called to particular service. And one of the elders asked me what I thought differentiated Calvary from some other congregations. 

And I’m not sure I have a fully articulated answer to that question. But I thought about it as I worked on this sermon, and so here’s a letter to you, Calvary, with thanks to Paul. 

From Marci, servant of Christ Jesus, 

To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Calvary, with the elders and deacons: 

Grace to you and peace from God our Mother and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

I thank my God for every remembrance of you, always in every one of my prayers for all of you, praying with joy for your partnership in the gospel from my first day in 2020 until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you back in 1854 will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. 

You have always been willing to speak God’s love to and for your community, being sure people outside these walls know that God’s love is for them, just as it is for you. You’ve also spoken God’s challenge to and for your community, standing in the public square and advocating for the things and the people that are close to God’s heart. You also have a heart for others, giving of your time and treasure to serve the community. And my challenge to you is that your witness must be expanded. More of you must participate in what some of you have been faithfully doing. 

It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, for all of you are my partners in God’s grace. I love the way you enjoy being together, and for the ways you are earnestly working to expand your welcome. I appreciate that many of you have leaned in to deepening and strengthening your faith this past year, by showing up for church nights, bible studies, choir practice, leadership and service opportunities in the middle of a busy, busy world. I don’t take it for granted. The investment of time and treasure you make for your faith is an investment in God’s dreams for the world. 

And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what really matters, so that the love you share, and the community you are building can strengthen the neighborhood outside these walls, bringing more and more people to know they are always and already loved by the God who calls us, who equips us, and who sustains us through the trials of this world. 

Finally, beloveds, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Rejoice in the Lord always, again, I say rejoice. 

Amen