WHY WOULD PAUL REJOICE
WHEN HE KNEW PEOPLE PREACHED THE GOSPEL “IN PRETENSE?”
Roger Campbell (edited for space)
. . . “What then?
notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretense, or in truth,
Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will
rejoice” (Phil 1:18). Since “pretense” is defined as “a
deceptive and false action or appearance; a false purpose”
[Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus], many have wondered: how
could Paul rejoice when folks were preaching in a deceptive
manner or with the wrong attitude? . . .
The theme of this section deals with the circumstances under
which the Gospel was preached in Rome while Paul was a prisoner
there. . . .“But I would ye should understand, brethren, that
the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto
the furtherance of the gospel” (1:12).
As we try to analyze the message of these verses, some basic
questions are helpful.
1) Who had been preaching when Paul wrote this epistle? A: “Many
of the brethren in the Lord” (1:14).
2) How had these brothers preached? A: On one hand, they had
preached boldly – the preachers were “much more bold to speak
the word without fear” (1:14).
3) What message were these brethren preaching? A: “The gospel”
(1:12,17), “the word” (1:14), the “Christ” (1:15,16,18). How
many messages were these brothers preaching? Were they preaching
one message, or three different ones? A: One. From Acts
8:4,5,12,25,35 we learn that to preach the word is the same as
preaching the Christ, which is the same as preaching the Gospel.
Thus, when Philippians 1:15-16 says the brethren preached the
Gospel or the Christ, it means they were preaching the right
message (Mark 16:15).
4) How does the Holy Spirit describe the two groups of saints
that preached in Rome when Paul was in bonds there? A: Notice
the words or terms associated with one group: “envy and strife”
(v.15), “contention” (v.16), “not sincerely” (v.16), desiring to
add to Paul's affliction (v.16), “in pretense” (v.18). The ones
who made up a second group are described as preaching “of good
will” (v.15), “of love” (v.17), and “in truth” (v.18). What a
contrast between them and the other group!
It is sometimes suggested that in view of the inspired message
of Philippians one, when religious error is taught, we ought to
just leave that error and those who teach it alone. After all,
Paul did rejoice, didn't he? There are two facts we must not
overlook. First, the brethren about whom Paul writes in this
section taught the truth, not error. Second, the conclusion that
we should be silent when religious error is propagated
contradicts other clear Bible statements and thus is an
incorrect view (2Timothy 4:2). . . .
. . . why in the world would Paul rejoice when he knew that some
of those who were preaching did so with the wrong motive and
spirit? . . . Wasn't the pitiful attitude of some of the
preachers cause for sadness and weeping rather than joy? By no
means did Paul praise anyone for using deception or having an
improper motive. The Spirit's message about love that is
recorded in 1 Corinthians 13:1-7 shows the necessity of having
genuine love. . . . .
No, the apostle could never praise impure motives or the wrong
spirit. What about those people that heard the preaching of the
envy-strife-contention-pretense brethren? . . . If the hearers
responded to that truth by believing and obeying it, they would
be saved from their sins, regardless of the attitude or motive
of the one(s) that preached to them. That is, the salvation of
the obedient hearers did not depend on the attitude of the
preachers. . . . Concerning Paul's joy, we note that he could
never rejoice over strife and envy, because these will keep
people out of the kingdom of God (Gal. 5:20,21). . . . Paul was,
however, delighted that souls were being saved by obeying the
Gospel that they heard (1:18; Rom. 6:17,18).
May God help us to rejoice when souls are saved. At the same
time, may we ever be on guard against unholy motives and
attitudes that might crop up, both in ourselves and in others.
Family Bulletin Board
Remember in prayer
and with cards, phone calls, or visits those who have chronic
illnesses: Delsie Bishop, Reva Brewer, Ella Brumitt, Jamie
Farmer, Francis Ferren, Elizabeth Fowler, Savannah Green, Lola
Mae Hamlett, and Louise Hunt.
Ladies, you are invited to a Baby Shower to welcome
little Emma Crossman next Sunday, here at the building, at
4:30pm.
Elementary Youth Group meetings will now be held on the
second and fourth Sundays, here at the building, at 4:30pm.
Sign-up sheets still need a few names. July and December
have some empty spaces. Also, there is a lot of room on the
sign-up sheet for mowing the lawn.
Pancake breakfast - June 14, at the Mark Reed home.
Breakfast will be served from 8 ‘till 10:00am Please put your
name on the sign-up sheet in the foyer.
Directory updates will be printed soon. If you have
changes to your family information be sure to give it to Laura
Stark.
New address:
Larry & Sharilyn Herren
431 Sandy Ridge Drive
Valparaiso, IN 46383
Phone: (219) 465-6178
