Choose Joy: IT FEELS GOOD LOVING SOMEBODY

Discussion Guide for Sunday, May 3, 2020

IT FEELS GOOD LOVING SOMEBODY WHEN SOMEBODY LOVES YOU BACK!

Series: Choose Joy: An Exposition of
the Book of Philippians

Big Idea

When we studied the names of God, we learned that God often allows crisis situations in our lives that genuinely test our faith because He wants to reveal Himself to us. However, He also allows such crisis situations, not just to reveal Himself, but to reveal the people in our lives. That’s what happened in Paul’s life. He was in a crisis situation – under house arrested in Rome awaiting the final verdict from the emperor, and this crisis has once again shown that the Philippian church really did love Paul. Their love was not just with words, but with deeds. The Philippians has provided financial support on at least four occasions, and Paul is writing to them to say “you are in my heart” and I love you with “the affection of Christ” (Philippians 1:7-8).

The lesson of this week’s text is that people who love you think the best and want the best for us. Paul demonstrated this in Philippians 1:1-11. Paul thought the best about the Philippians. He calls attention to their relationship with God by referring to them as “the saints in Christ” (v. 1) who participated in the gospel (v. 5) and partook of grace (v. 7). Yes, there were overseers and deacons in the church, but their position in the church was not as important as their position in Christ. Also, Paul wanted the best for the Philippians. In Philippians 1:6, Paul shifts his attention from the already to the not yet and talks about his confidence in God. God had begun a good work in them, and God was responsible for completing that work. Until God completes His work in them, Paul resolved to trust God with the progress of the Philippians. This is why Paul prayed for the Philippians. Paul’s prayer included both praise (vv. 3-4) and petition (vv. 9-11). His desire was to see the church glorify God by loving people like Jesus loved people.

Discussion Questions

  • The word “saint” in the original language literally means “to be dedicated to God.” How are you living out your dedication to God in your everyday life?
  • What area in your life do you trust God to continue working on? How can you cooperate with God in “perfecting” process?

Prayer Focus

Thank You for loving me so much, Father. Your Word says that Your thoughts about me are good, and not evil. They are designed to give me a hope, a future, and an expected end. I trust you to complete the work You’ve begun in me. Teach me how to cooperate with what You are doing in my life so that I will bear the fruits of righteousness and that You will be glorified in all that I do.

Next Steps

Paul’s prayer for the Philippians was that their love would abound more and more (v. 9). They possessed the spiritual gifts of hospitality and generosity, and they had used those gifts to demonstrate their love for the apostle. However, Paul wanted their love for God and for people to lead to a lifestyle that resembled the life of Jesus. For example, the word “blameless” in verse 10 means that the Philippians would live in a way that would not cause others to stumble. Pay close attention to how you handle trying situations this week. Be ever mindful that someone else is watching and that your behavior might cause him/her to stumble.

Want to Get Ahead?

Read and meditate on Philippians 1:12-20 in your devotional time this week.

GBMBC MEMBERS: April Leadership Meeting

Our Ministry Program

Moving from Maintenance to
Ministry and Missions

Philippians 3:12-16

Focusing on our Membership – Getting the Right Attitude.

Focusing on our Maturity – Getting the Right Application.

Focusing on Ministry and Missions – Getting the Right Approach.

Focusing on Management – Getting the Right Actions.

Leadership Nugget of the Day: We should strive for a spirit of excellence (Daniel 6:2).

May – Plan of Action

The Lord Supper can be received on Sunday, May 3rd between the hours of 10:00 am and 12:00 noon at the church.

The Sanctuary Choir is scheduled to rehearse and record on Thursday, April 30th and Thursday, May 21st at 6:00 p.m.*

The Male Chorus is scheduled to rehearse and record on Thursday, May 7th and Thursday, May 28th at 6:00 p.m.*

The Men and Women Fellowships are scheduled to lead the Corporate Prayer Call on Monday, May 11th – Saturday, May 16th and Monday, May 25th – Saturday, May 30th at 7:00 a.m.

  • Men’s Fellowship leads prayer on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
  • Women’s Fellowship leads prayer on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
  • The Ministerial Staff leads prayer as assigned by Dr. Mickles.

The Sunday School Teaching Staff is scheduled to record lessons on Tuesday, May 5th, Tuesday, May 19th, and Tuesday, June 2nd.**

All ministries are to host their regularly scheduled meetings via the conference call line with the intent of preparedness for the return to onsite worship.

In honor of Mother’s Day, the Greater Beulah Church is donating 200 care packages to the women of House of Mercy and Open Door Community House (100 care packages to each shelter). Deliver your donation to the church any Sunday in the month of May between 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. (Dr. Mickles is overseeing this mission project.)

  • Recommended Items: brush, comb, deodorant, feminine care products, lotion, shampoo, shower gel, soap, toothbrush, travel size toothpaste, washcloths, etc.

Copies of the By-Laws of the Greater Beulah Baptist Church are available from the church office by request.

Thank You:

To our finance ministry.
To our men and women fellowships.
To our ministerial staff.
To our music ministry.
To our Sunday school teaching staff.

To Pastor Rondale V. Watts.
To Deacon Freddie Blackmon, Jr.
To Deacon Willie Hornsby.

*This rehearsal time is subject to change. The music ministry will provide music for parking lot services when scheduled. More information about Sunday, May 17th will be announced.
** Specific teaching assignments and recording times TBA.

Choose Joy: MEETING PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE

Discussion Guide for Sunday, April 26, 2020

MEETING PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE

Series: Choose Joy:
An Exposition of the Book of Philippians

Big Idea

This week, Pastor Mickles began a new sermon series on the book of Philippians with a study of the church’s origins in Acts 16. We learned that the story began with a series of closed doors. After season of tremendous ministry success, the Apostle Paul was “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak in Asia” and was “not permitted” to go into Bithynia (Acts 16:6-7). An easier way to wrap our minds around this is to say that the Lord allowed hindrances to Paul’s plan, and if he would have continued anyway, he would have went without the Lord’s approval and blessing. Through these experiences, Paul learned (and we should too) that when God says no He typically has something greater in mind. God’s plan for his life was much greater than his plan for his life.

God put a dream in Paul’s heart for Macedonia. He concluded “that God had called them to preach the gospel to them” (Acts 16:10), and as a result the church at Philippi was founded. Paul’s ministry philosophy was simple: Meet People Where They Are. On the Sabbath day, he went out of the city down to the riverside. There he found a group of Jewish women praying. He sat down and talked with them about the Word of God. As Paul opened the word to the people, the Lord opened their hearts to the gospel. Open hearts led to open homes. That’s the first principle we learned: meeting people where they are means sharing the message. Eventually, Paul would rebuke the demonic spirit in a slave-girl being used for profit. This was an act of mercy. This young lady was possessed by a devil and oppressed by devilish men, and it “greatly annoyed” the Apostle. So much so, he had to do something about it. That’s the second principle: meeting people where they are means showing mercy. The powers that be did not appreciate Paul’s act of mercy and had him and his ministry companion beaten and thrown in prison. There they made a conscious decision to sing and to pray while the other prisoners listened in. When an earthquake came in the middle of the night loosing everyone’s chains and opening all of the doors, the jailer prepared to commit suicide, but Paul saw an opportunity for ministry. That opportunity led to the salvation of the jailer and his entire household. That’s the third principle: meeting people where they are means stepping in with ministry.

Discussion Questions

  • Has someone ever meet you where you were? What was your experience? What was the end result?
  • Have you made a conscious decision to choose joy regardless of the circumstances? Can you remember a time when you sang your way through a trying time? Has it ever been hard to pray through a struggle? How did the experience strengthen your relationship with God?

Prayer Focus

You are the God of closed doors, and I am grateful. Your plans for me are always greater than anything I can ask, think, or imagine. Help me to stand still until Your will is clear. I want to be sensitive to the God-sized dream that You have for me, and when the time comes, I don’t want to hesitate. May my answer be an immediate yes! May I follow You into great adventures of faith that change the course of history…even if it’s just mine.

Next Steps

Paul concluded that his mission in Macedonia was to preach the gospel to them, but we don’t ever read of him preaching a sermon. He had a conversation with the women down by the riverside. He showed mercy to the slave-girl on the way. He (and Silas) sang and prayed loud enough for the other prisoners to hear, and he simply answered the jailer’s question – with one sentence. The word used for “preach” in this passage simply means to share the good news about Jesus. This week, find a creative way to preach. No, I don’t mean taking a text with three points and poem, but I do mean finding a way that fits your context to share the good news about Jesus with someone who may need to hear it.

Want to Get Ahead?

Read and meditate on Philippians 1:1-11 in your devotional time this week.

Deeper Bible Study: AN OVERVIEW OF PHILIPPIANS

CHOOSE JOY: An Overview of Philippians

(Notes from the PowerPoint Presentation)

Philippians – Paul’s Joy Letter

  • It is a very personal, maybe his most personal, letter. The tone of the letter suggests that the Church at Philippi could be Paul’s favorite congregation.
    • Philippians 4:1 – Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.
  • The Church at Philippi was founded in response to a supernatural vision from God (Acts 16:8-10) and it marked the expansion of the gospel to the European continent. This is important for several reasons:
    • As for natural resource, Philippi was know for its gold ore.
    • Economically, the city was located on the Eqnation Way (the Roman trade route from East to West) and was only 11 miles for a port to the Aegean Sea.
    • From a military perspective, Philippi served as a key defense against northern invasion.
    • Because the city was a Roman colony populated by retired or exiled soldiers, Philippians were considered full Roman citizens and enjoyed the following benefits:
      • They spoke Latin.
      • They did not pay taxes (poll, land, etc.).
      • They had the right to buy and sell property.
      • They had the full protection of the Roman legal system.
      • And even though Rome was 700 miles away, their government and way of life was set up to mirror that of the capitol city – so much so Philippi was called “Little Rome”.
    • Philippi, and the other 3 districts of Macedonia, gave women more social freedom and economic opportunity than anywhere else in the Roman Empire. This is why:
      • Lydia from Thyatira headquartered her business in Philippi (Acts 16:14)
      • Paul would acknowledge that Eudoia and Syntyche were “women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel” (Philippians 4:1-3).
        • This indicates that these women were possibly a part of the Acts 16 prayer meeting and had assisted Paul in the founding of the church.
  • The church was founded during Paul’s second missionary journey. 5 years later, Paul would visit them a second (and possibly a third) time during his third missionary journey (Acts 19:21; 20:1-3, 6; 2 Corinthians 1:16)
  • Another 5 years has passed, and Paul is in prison. Scholars debate on whether Paul is imprisoned in Ephesus, Caesarea, or Rome. All the evidence points to his Roman imprisonment (Acts 28:30, 31).
  • Four letters (epistles) were written during this period, and all four bare witness to Paul’s imprisonment:
    • Colossians 4:18 – “Remember my imprisonment.”
    • Philemon 10 – “Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my imprisonment.”
    • Ephesians 6:20 – “for which I am an ambassador in chains.”
    • Philippians 1:12-20 – “my circumstances”; “my imprisonment.”
  • Colossians, Philemon, and Ephesians were written around the same time early in Paul’s imprisonment, and they were sent to their varied destinations in A.D. 61 by Tychicus and Onesimus (Colossians 4:7-9).
  • It took some times for the letter to the Philippians to be penned and posted. Consider the length of time it would have taken to travel the 700 miles between the two cities (Rome and Philippi) at least 5 times:
    • The news travels from Rome to Philippi to  communicate that Paul has been imprisoned.
    • The Philippian church sends Epaphroditus to Rome to deliver their financial gift and to offer any assistance he could considering Luke and Aristarchus have both left Paul in Rome (Acts 27:2).
    • Epaphroditus becomes terribly sick will in Rome, and news is sent back to Philippi to inform his family and the church.
    • The Philippians send correspondence back to Rome inquiring about Epaphroditus’ health and the progress of Paul’s case, which becomes the occasion for the letter.
    • Now, in A.D. 62 (10 years after the founding of the Church at Philippi), Paul sends Epaphroditus home with this letter.
  • Paul’s letter to the Philippians was designed to accomplish several things:
    • This letter was to express Paul’s appreciation for the church’s financial support (Philippians 1:3-11; 2:19-30; 4:10-20).
    • This letter was to provide an update of Paul’s circumstance:
      • The Gospel was still being preached (Philippians 1:12-20).
      • He was gaining an audience with the soldiers and the servants of Caesar’s household (Philippians 1:13; 4:22).
      • He was expecting a decision on his case in the very near future (Philippians 2:23-24).
    • This letter was to warn against false teachers (Philippians 3:2, 18-19).
    • This letter was to encourage the Philippians to practice the spiritual grace of joy even in the midst of internal and/or external struggles (Philippians 2:18; 3:1; 4:4).
  • Like the other prison epistles, Philippians focuses on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Philippians is 4 chapters and 104 verses. The name of Jesus or one of His titles appears 51 times in those 104 verses.
    • One of the most important Christological passages in all of Scripture is found in Philippians 2:6-11.
      • It is the most doctrinal section of the book highlighting the incarnation, humiliation, and exaltation of Jesus Christ.
      • But in context, this early Christian hymn was not written for doctrinal content, but to provide an example for all believers to imitate (Philippians 2:1-5).
  • This is why the doctrinal key verse is Philippians 2:5 – “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (KJV).
  • The key word of Philippians is joy. The term joy, in either noun or verb form, is used over 16 times.
    • The Greek word is chairō. The theological sense of the word is:
      • Joy is a gift from God to those who believe the gospel produced by the Holy Ghost experienced most fully as believers receive and obey God’s Word, deepened through trials, and made complete when we set our hopes on the glories of heaven.
    • This is illustrated in Paul’s own joy:
      • Philippians 1:18 – “in this I rejoice.”
      • Philippians 2:2 – “make my joy complete.”
      • Philippians 4:1 – “my joy and crown.”
    • When we acknowledge that the goal of Philippians is practical Christianity  more than it is doctrine or theology, we see a secondary theme and key verse:
      • Theme: The Believer’s Joy in Spite of Adverse Circumstances.
      • Key Verse: Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, Rejoice.”
    • This is important because while Paul was imprisoned in Rome, the church at Philippi was facing difficult times as well:
      • Although the church excelled in the spiritual gift of generosity (Philippians 4:10-18), the Philippians were poor people (2 Corinthians 8:1-2 – “their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.”).
      • They were facing persecution (Philippians 1:28-30).
      • They were in danger of, if not already, experiencing dissension amongst the membership (Philippians 2:1-4; 4:1-3).
    • So to encourage them, Paul uses images like the athlete, the soldier, or even the commercial worker to illustrate the tension of the Christian life, and he uses these images to exhort believers to:
      • Pursue unity through humility (Philippians 2:1-18), and
      • Progress in their Christian maturity (Philippians 3:1-4:20).
  • 5 Points of Application
    • The city of Philippi was called “Little Rome,” a reflection of what Rome was like. The church should, likewise, reflect the Kingdom of God in the earth.
      • The church should be a “kingdom colony.”
    • The Philippian church was committed to partnering together for the advancement of the gospel, in spite of their poverty or the opposition they faced. They were an “ALL IN” church.
      •  The people were involved.
      • The people invested.
    • Like all churches, the Church at Philippi had its issues, but their attention was always redirected to what was most important (Christ, His gospel, their spiritual maturity, the advancement of the Kingdom), and that rallied them together in unity. Our priorities has to be more important than our preferences.
      • We unify around our priorities, but we differ on our preferences.
    • The book opens with Paul praying for the people. The book ends with Paul encouraging the people to pray for themselves. This points to making progress on the journey of spiritual maturity.
    • The overall message – YOU MUST FIGHT FOR YOUR JOY!
      • We dishonor Christ when we serve Him without joy.
      • Choose Joy!