3 Consequences of a life sacrificed to Christ

Good morning brothers and sisters in Christ, I have brought this message from the Lord with
the hope of changing your minds and hearts in the same way it happened to me while I was
writing it because, as a preacher, when the Holy Spirit touch your soul with His words, you
just want to share this with the church in order to be all of us transformed by His eternal
Grace, love and mercy everyday of our life. But first let's read in the Bible Philippians chapter
1 from verse 12 to 26.
12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have happened instead
for the progress of the gospel, 13 so that my imprisonment in Christ has become
known in the whole praetorium and to all the rest, 14 and most of the brothers,
trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, dare even more to speak the word
without fear. 15 Some even because of envy and strife preach Christ, but some also
because of good will. 16 The latter do so from love, knowing that I am appointed for
the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ from selfish ambition, not
sincerely, thinking to raise up affliction in my imprisonment. 18 What is the result?
Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in
this I rejoice. But also I will rejoice, 19 for I know that this will turn out to me for
deliverance through your prayer and the support of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20
according to my eager expectation and hope, that I will be put to shame in nothing,
but with all boldness, even now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether
through life or through death. 21 For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 But
if it is to live in the flesh, this is fruitful work for me, and which I will prefer I do not
know. 23 But I am hard pressed between the two options, having the desire to depart
and to be with Christ, for this is very much better. 24 But to stay on in the flesh is
more necessary for your sake. 25 And because I am convinced of this, I know that I
will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so
that what you can be proud of may increase in Christ Jesus because of me through
my return again to you.
Let´s pray…

In my previous sermon here, I said that Christianity was the most spectacular and fruitful
way of life on earth, primarily because of the solidarity, kindness or care for the needy. BUT,
and there's always a but, right? All of that has a price, a price that many modern Christians
don't believe they have to pay, and that price is SACRIFICE, a real sense of sacrifice.

In this world in which everything is so fast, easy and instantaneous, many churches try to
sell this same recipe so you just have to confess Jesus, try to believe in him, come to church,
love everybody, being open minded and … (the most important) give your money to be
blessed and prospered by God.

And that’s a tragedy because, first, nothing in life is that easy, anything worthy needs an
incredible amount of effort, patience, time and faith, from having a relationship, a profession,
being part of a family, a workplace, a neighborhood, and let’s not talk about being an elite
or world class athlete or musician.
 and second, Christianity is much much deeper than that. It's not about the exterior, what
can be seen but the interior, the inner changes, the relationship with Jesus, the work of the
Holy Spirit in the heart, the crucifixion of the flesh, the desires, the old nature in order to live
by the new one no matter the price, even sacrificing the life itself.

I recently watched a movie called "the insanity of God" it's about the life and ministry of Nik
and Ruth Ripken, they were missionaries from the 80's to early 2000's in many of the most
dangerous countries in the world to preach the gospel, I mean Somalia, the Soviet union,
Ukraine, China and after 30 years, losing a son in the field, getting sick so many times and
almost die they had 2 conclusions:
Christians in those countries have very clear that Jesus is worth everything, although their
own lives. And western Christianity is very shallow and knows absolutely nothing about
sacrifice, I really recommend this movie.

So, what does sacrifice mean for Christians now? May I say that I have a life sacrificed to
Jesus? How can I know?

Well, today we will be able to answer these questions through the life of the greatest
missionary of all times, and he's no other than Paul, and these answers have the form of 3
results, 3 fruits, in other words:

3 Consequences of a life sacrificed to Christ, and the first consequence of this sacrifice
is that

1. It Produces progress of the gospel

12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have happened instead
for the progress of the gospel…

In order to have some biblical context, the circumstances that Paul is writing here is that he
was in prison. We don't know how long he's been there but it's fundamental to note the
keyword that let us know his attitude about this terrible situation, "instead", we can see that
he's taking it as something positive, he's not complaining, or crying or blaming no one, he's
just turned the tragedy in blessing and that’s possible only because of the Holy Spirit, he’s
the only one who can change our perspective to fill our heart with hope and our mind with
his purpose, the progress of the gospel. All this tragic, awful and unbeatable situation is to
advance the gospel.

Only in Jesus Christ, we can see that our sacrifice is helpful to the gospel, produces progress
and advances for His divine plan. And this is an amazing feeling, don’t you think? Despite
our grief and hopelessness God gives us the discernment to see Him, to see what He's
doing for us and for His cause, and Paul gives us 2 very clear evidences of this progress;
that it doesn’t go unnoticed and motivates others to preach.

a. this is a progress that does not go unnoticed

13 so that my imprisonment in Christ has become known in the whole praetorium and
to all the rest…
There's something that Paul knew how to do like no one else, and it was to not go unnoticed.
Maybe it was because of his testimony, his praying or his worship but he made sure that
everybody knew that a Christian was in town,

That's the kind of impact that a Christian has to do in family, the work place, the
neighborhood, everywhere.

Your life as a Christian can't go unnoticed. And this is not a calling to have a life obsessed
with social media like people do now in which they post what they eat, what they do, what
or where they are, usually showing a false reality, No, it's quite the opposite, it's that you
have to make sure that your testimony as a Christian through your kindness, joy, good
disposition and faith are your distinctive mark, and that everybody knows you for that. That's
what make your sacrifice worthy.

But it's not just that, because this sacrifice also

b. Motivates the preaching of Jesus

14 and most of the brothers, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, dare
even more to speak the word without fear…

And although we can see here from verse 14 to 18 a conflict because of the questionable
intentions of some believers, the core of the passage is the growing motivation and audacity
they had to preach because of his sacrifice in prison. in fact, in verse 18 he said:
What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is
proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.

It’s very interesting because Paul is not victimizing himself but pointing to God as the source
of their motivation to dare to preach even more. He's not taking the glory for himself or
assuming the limelight but he can recognize that his sacrifice wasn’t useless and it was
motivating the preaching of Jesus Christ and that was what made him so so happy.

Maybe you’re not aware of this, but there are people who are motivated by your service to
Christ.

Last year I returned from Punta Cana after 3 years there, and I felt so frustrated because I
couldn't accomplish the plan I had, my wife and I spent that time apart, and I couldn't serve
the Lord. And one Sunday in church this sister came to preach, her name is Ingrid, and she
was so nervous because it was her first sermon and the truth is that it was spectacular. I
cried like never before, but her daring to preach despite her fears and insecurities motivated
me so much, and I can assure you that I am here today in front of you thanks to that sermon.

I don’t know what kind of sacrifice you are making now to follow Jesus but His faithfulness
makes others to see the Gospel in you, your life is a testimony of His work and it not only
doesn’t go unnoticed, but motivates others Christian to follow your example, to preach
Jesus, to live the same way you do. So, despite what you think, your sacrifice produces as
a consequence progress of the gospel,
And there's a 2nd consequence of your sacrifice, and it’s that

It Develops a mature faith

Paul could easily say "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" and this was possible
because he was filled with the Holy Spirit, which allowed him to have a faith that not only
transcended all kinds of situations, but also developed something crucial to be considered
a mature faith, and that was discernment.
Like anything in this life, maturity is a process. When we were new believers, our faith was
weak and fragile and we barely understood what we could do through the Spirit.
But as time passes and we deepen our relationship with the Lord, discernment emerges and
we begin to understand the way faith works.
And in this passage, we´ll be able to see 4 elements that discern a mature faith.

a. the value of intercession

19a for I know that this will turn out to me for deliverance through your prayer…

Paul had the absolute conviction that his liberation would be in part due to their prayers,
their intercession to God. With this statement he waa recognizing their important role in the
result that he was longing. A mature faith is the product not only of our own prayers but the
support of brothers and sisters whose ministry, calling or gift from God is to keep praying for
other believers, keep praying for you

It is very common to hear in church that your arrival there, your function or your ministry is
the result of intercession they had been doing. It also could be a healing or a miraculous
action due to the intercessory prayer.

This makes us understand that our faith is not something individual but a collective effort,
the result of a church as a one body, and it is so important that we can have the hope, the
confidence that our spiritual life is supported by the intercession of our church permanently.

b. the participation of the Holy Spirit

19b…and the support of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

The other element that Paul’s faith could discern was the contribution of the Holy Spirit. He
was so clear about how he could bear all this situation of his imprisonment and his hopes of
getting free, and it was through the intercession prayers of the Philippians, but more
important, through the support and power of the Holy Spirit.
It could sound so obvious but, one thing is being filled with the Holy Spirit, and another very
different is being aware of His presence and move in our life, and that’s precisely what
defines a mature faith.
In these lines we can see that he was calm, grateful and sure that he would be free, and
that was not something that Paul could produce himself in his mind or heart, but all this was
the fruit of the Holy Spirit. So, it is not only us, but our neighbor´s prayers and the Holy Spirit
who strengthen and complement our spiritual life.
c. The glorifying work of Christ
20 according to my eager expectation and hope, that I will be put to shame in nothing,
but with all boldness, even now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether
through life or through death…

This passage is simply spectacular because of its spiritual richness and depth. While I was
writing this sermon, I could see this mature faith like levels or stages, and to be honest we
have to have a real deep relation with the Lord to be able to discern, feel and write something
like Paul did here, so Let’s see:
my eager expectation and hope, I won't be put in shame, with all boldness, even now
as always God will be exalted in my body, whether through life or through death…

All of these words and real emotions can be transferred to Jesus on His way to the cross.
And this is the glorifying work of Him in us, because as well as he glorified in the cross, he
glorifies in us every time we sacrifice our own life for him. And only when you can feel and
discern all of these in your mind and heart, is when you have reached this third level jof a
mature faith.

d. The paradox of Christian life v. 21-24

21 For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 But if it is to live in the flesh, this is
fruitful work for me, and which I will prefer I do not know. 23 But I am hard pressed
between the two options, having the desire to depart and to be with Christ, for this is
very much better. 24 But to stay on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake…

This is a really high level of maturity in faith. What a dilemma Paul had here because he
decided to put aside his most cherished desire, which was to be with the Lord, in order to
continue serving him in the church. And we could think that this kind of commitment is
absolutely related to a confirmed calling by God or a well established ministry like Paul had,
but this is a level of faith that every Christian will reach to the extent that he or she deepens
his relationship with the Lord, this is the last test, the great challenge that leads us to decide
between our desires or the service to the Lord, and this is a decision that sooner or later we
will have in front of us.

So, we have seen that a sacrificed life to God produces progress of the gospel and develops
a mature faith, but that’s not all because there’s a third consequence, and that

It Prioritizes the neighbor

25 And because I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all
of you for your progress and joy in the faith,
26 so that what you can be proud of may increase in Christ Jesus because of me through
my return again to you.

25 I’m sure of this: I will stay alive and remain with all of you to help your progress
and the joy of your faith, 26 and to increase your pride in Christ Jesus through my
presence when I visit you again.
Here we can see the target of Paul’s faith, the real reason for all his sacrifice, the philippians,
these very special Jesus followers, and this passage is all about them and Paul's dedication
to their growth. He was sure he would be there again to support them because he made
them his priority. That's what Jesus did, prioritize humanity over His divinity, Paul prioritized
church over his suffering, his imprisonment and his desire to be with Jesus.

Prioritizing has to do with putting the most important first over everything, but this is very
hard to do because of distractions and lack of discernment.

In the book "7 habits of highly effective people" it is highlighted that one of the main
problems people have to achieve their goals is choosing and focusing on priorities. For
example, how many of us here are dealing now with the addiction to the cell phone or social
media? Everything would be so different in our life and ministry if we´d focus decidedly on
our real priorities.

For Christians, the second priority should be the neighbor, only after the relation with God
and long side to our own life it has to be our neighbor. There are in the Bible many passages
referred to this, but Matthews 22.39 is simple and direct: "love your neighbor as yourself".
So, as well as something affect you, you have to consider how this affects your neighbor.
Even more, we have to quit anything that represents a risk for our neighbor to fall or sin, no
matter if it's something we do regularly or we think it's harmless, as we can read in Romans
14.21 “It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to
stumble”.

Now we can be sure that the sacrifice we make for Christ has an important impact on the
purpose of the Lord because it produces progress in the gospel, besides it helps us develop
a mature faith and lets us focus on our neighbor as our main priority.

We don't have to pass the same situations that Paul did to say that we have a life sacrificed
to Christ. I think that all of us, in our own way, are fighting against something, are sacrificing
something to obey God and being useful in His hands.
I remember this story in a book where the author was talking about a friend who was a
brilliant person, very intelligent, with a promising career in the theological and academic field
but one day left everything and disappeared. Years later, this friend contacted him to tell him
what had happened so he went to Canada to meet with his friend. He said that God told him
to serve him through the care of someone who was quadriplegic. He had to do everything
for him, this person couldn't talk so he was almost all day in silence, and there were some
very hard days because of the frustration of not seeing any progress in his health.
But the thing that struck him the most was when this friend told him that despite the difficult
and heartbreaking of this situation, seeing the Glory of God in the eyes and life of this patient,
he would not change a single day, not a single minute with him, for that academic world in
which he worked before.

Considering all of these and in Paul's life, can you say that your life is sacrificed to Jesus?
Are you helping in any way with the progress of the gospel? Is your faith really maturing? Is
your neighbor a priority in your daily life?

I'm not here today to judge or attack anyone, but I'm absolutely sure of one thing. The Lord
could do the most amazing and incredible things with every person here, with every member
of His church if only He finds in our hearts, like Himself did going to the cross, or like Paul,
or this person, the same obedience, commitment, faith and priority that made up a life
sacrificed to Christ.

IT IS UP TO EVERYONE OF US HERE TO BELIEVE IT OR NOT,

THE LORD JUST HOPES WE DO…

LET´S WE PRAY…