Author: Danny Panter

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.-Paul, Philippians 3:13-14

One of the most unpleasant experiences I’ve had on a plane was our descent into Kunming, China. The turbulence was unlike anything I had experienced before, at times feeling like we are free-falling the length of a football field. Everyone was anxious, wide-eyed and white knuckled, while doing their best to appear as if this were normal. Truth be told, I was barley holding it together, one hand gripping the armrest, the other grasping for the barf bag in the seat pocket in front of me. I had traveled the world, but never like this.

30 minutes…20 minutes…10 minutes…5 minutes…the landing gear drops, and a few minutes later, touchdown. Phew. I had made it unscathed. My seat-mate, wasn’t so fortunate.

The journey is not the destination. In fact, the journey is sometimes downright unpleasant, with its various stops and diversions along the way, like turbulence on my descent into Kunming.

But it is the destination that sees us through to the end of journey. The destination is what helps us press on.

…let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. ² We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus (the destination), the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.  Hebrews 12:1-2

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 3:1-11 (day 6)

Jesus was no stranger to difficult and interesting conversations. Often enough, the locals, including the religious leaders, would try to trip Him up; other times Jesus would throw a wrench in their thinking, never shying aware from saying something truly offensive.

This account makes its way to the top of the list:  After a brief exchange with local Jews, Jesus declares, “You people are from your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires.” (John 8:44)

Can you imagine how offensive this statement was to descendants of Abraham? 

But Jesus was driving home the same point Paul is making to the Philippians. Your spiritual heritage (or righteousness) is not determined by externals, where you were born, who your parents are, how well you follow the law, etc. Your heritage is determined by who you love.

“If God were your father, you would love me…”-Jesus, John 8:42

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 2:19-30 (day six)

For I have no one like him…Philippians 2:20

What set Timothy apart? Was it his unique giftedness? His eloquence? Or maybe he stood head and shoulders above all the others. Perhaps he was more educated than most, or had a quick wit. It could have been his comedic timing, or deft use of sarcasm. Maybe Paul just needed an extra pair of hands to run errands while he was in prison.

Paul mentions none of those things. We know two reasons Paul described him this way; he genuinely cared for others, and concerned himself mostly with Jesus’ interests rather than his own.

Make no mistake, Paul’s mentioning of Timothy and Epaphroditus was strategic. Aside from Jesus, he intended to tie their examples to his command:

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit…Philippians 2:3

Men and woman, like this, were in short supply then and today.

Be different. Be a Timothy. You will be set apart too.

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 2:12-18 (day six)

Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.” Genesis 1:28

Work hard to show the results of your salvation,… Philippians 2:12

Be fruitful. Multiply. Have dominion. Work. From the very beginning God set it in the heart of humanity, His image bearers, to do good work. Good work has always been tied to fruitfulness, and fruitfulness to God’s good pleasure and glory. Paul wasn’t commanding the Philippians to begin something new, but to return to something old.

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10

Do some good work.

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 2:5-11 (day six)

“You need to have the same mind as Jesus, to see the world the way He sees it, to share the same attitude.” -Paul, Philippians 2:5

To the church in Corinth he wrote, “Right now, we see things as if we are looking through a dark piece of glass.” To the church in Rome he wrote, “…be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Paul’s desire then and for the church now, is to see and live in the world the same way Jesus did.

Isn’t that what we need? A new mind to see through the things that rob of us joy, and fresh eyes to really see the things that matter most. I imagine it would turn everything on its head; just like he said:

“Don’t you know, to be great, you must become a servant to everyone.”-Jesus

“Don’t you know the meek will inherit the earth.” -Jesus

I’m in need of a new mind (everyday). Aren’t you?

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 2:1-4 (day six)

Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other,…Philippians 2:2a

Recently, I heard a story of one man’s pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago, or the Way of James. There are multiple paths one could take, one of the longest being over 500 miles. It is intended to be walked, although some bike.

His retelling was very inspiring. Along the way, different people, some times two or three at a time, but often just one person would join him. They would walk for miles together. It was those times, as I listened to his story, when he was aligned with someone, or going the same direction, that he found the most joy, along with the encouragement to walk just a little further each day.

This is what I think Paul means by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, or being of the same mind (ESV). Jesus would have used the illustration of being equally yoked; two oxen linked together in order to share the load.

Aligned together, and head in the same direction. Then we can surely cover more ground, and face almost anything.

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 1:27-30 (day six)

Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven…Philippians 1:27a

In a world increasingly divided into tribes (i.e. conservative or progressive), each brandishing their own weapons of war sharpened by deep-seated arrogance and loathing, Paul calls us into something otherworldly.

Faith and joy in Jesus binds us to a new kind of tribe, with a new set of weapons to advance a different mission. Arrogance and loathing are replaced with the two-edged sword of humility and grace, with mercy, and kindness rounding out the arsenal. The fruit of this heavenly tribe’s tactics isn’t death and annihilation, but new life and unity.

You see, you can always distinguish the tribe by the weapons they carry.

So, above all, live as citizens of heaven (aliens and exiles), soldiers in the Gospel tribe.

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 1:20-26 (day six).

“Right now, we see things as if we are looking through a dark piece of glass, but then we will see face to face.” -Paul, 1 Corinthians 13:12 (my paraphrase)

“For me, living is Jesus, and dying is gain.” -Paul, Philippians 1:21 (my paraphrase)

When I was a boy living in Lome, Togo, my parents bought an old but sizable telescope from a German man. It came in a large hefty solid wood box with latches on the side. Included with the telescope were a set of filters; one was used to look directly at the Sun. By the looks of it, it was virtually black. It was so dark a filter you couldn’t see anything at all looking through it, but when we put it over the lens of the telescope we could look directly at the Sun. It was marvelous.

With the filter, it was a marvel to behold the glory of the Sun; we even could identify sun spots on its surface. Of course, looking at the Sun without the filter would be dangerous; you can only handle the Sun filtered. You can’t really see it in all its glory.

That’s what Paul meant by dying is gain. He longed for the unfiltered gaze into the glory of the Son. He longed for the unfiltered life, and it came by dying (and resurrecting into new life).

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 1:12-19 (day six)

What I appreciate most about Paul is that his theology is not theory. His theology is not pie in the sky, with all talk and no action. No, Paul practiced what he preached. When in prison he wrote, “Don’t worry about me, God is really using my imprisonment.” When jealous preachers tried to make things worse for him he wrote, “I still rejoice, because at least they are telling people about Jesus, even if they do have the wrong motives.”

So, when you go back and read things like Romans 8:28 (NLT),

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

you believe Paul, because it was his life. He lived what he wrote. Now, we might be tempted to marvel at Paul’s grit and endurance, but what shines brightest is not Paul’s character, but the object of his affection-Jesus.

Paul’s life and words only make sense because of Jesus.

Re:Verse passage – Philippians 1:1-11 (day six)

This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:1

Many translations translate douloi as servant, while its most literal translation is slave. I imagine slave rails against our most basic American sensitivities-our inalienable rights, independence, freedom. Servant just feels better; on the surface it even seems more noble, but it doesn’t really capture Paul’s intent.

It was Paul’s desire to convey their captivity. They were held captive by Christ, in much the same was the Earth is held captive by the Sun. The gravitational pull of the Sun forces the Earth into its orbit. The Sun is literally center to the earth’s existence; it could not pull away even if it had the desire. Furthermore, it is the Sun that provides the energy for life to thrive on Earth. So, it is not only held captive by the Sun, it absolutely needs the Sun.

Paul lives in relation to the Son in much the same way; He can’t help himself. He’s a slave to the gravitational pull of the Son, and it is there, and ONLY there, that He will thrive.

Are you a servant of Christ, or a slave?